Clothing for newborn

I know in the book, it mentions that newborn babies should wear the T-shirts EXCLUSIVELY until the umbilical cord falls off. My baby is due Dec.28th, so it will be cold weather. What would you all suggest for clothing for the newborn baby until the cord falls off? Can the baby wear "sleepers" even if the cord hasn't fallen off? This is baby #1 for us, so I really need someone to tell me what the baby should wear! Thanks :)

My girl was born in February, and she always wore sleepers for the first few months. The umbilical cord fell off just fine and in a timely manner. In fact, I found it in her sleeper (gross). I would just make sure that the diaper doesn't cover the umbilical cord (you can either use newborn diapers or fold down size 1 diapers, which is what the hospital did). And make sure that you follow the instructions to swab the umbilical cord with alcohol. Sleepers should be fine. (I don't remember reading or anyone telling me that she shouldn't wear sleepers for that reason.) If you live someplace REALLY cold, you can layer t-shirts and socks under sleepers.

I hope that helps.

Thanks so much....I think I might go w/ sleepers for a while since it will be cold weather when my baby is due. Thanks again for the advice!! Take care,
~ECH

Hi!! My son was born last Dec. 29 and I dressed him in sleepers from the beginning (I can't remember, to tell the truth, if I used t-shirts or onesies at the beginning.). We live in MI so it was not real feasible to leave him mostly bare. But it healed just fine with doing alcohol swabs, folding the diaper down, etc.

Hi ~
My daughter was born in early March, and while we don't often deal with snow, the weather here in Seattle was cold enough to call for dressing my dd in sleepers or the long gowns with the elastic around the bottom - loved these for easy diaper changes!! I just layered a basic cotton tee shirt under her jammies to prevent her umbillical cord from catching/snagging on the fabric of her sleepwear. Also, Pampers makes "Premium" Newborn sized diapers (8-12 lbs.) that have a notched cut-out for the umbillical cord. It's tricky enough to get the hang of putting on a diaper, let alone folding the top down (and making it stay there) to accomodate the cord stump. Sure, these diapers cost a bit more, but I never had them leak. This is a feature you will appreciate after going thru many, many diaper changes during a 24 hour period! Good Luck!
Jules